Love and Problems
by imyrpal
Summary: Harry/Hermione...I suck at summaries. Harry, Ron, and Hermione are in their fifth year...READ!
1. Mixed Feelings

Disclaimer: This is a Harry Potter fanfic. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, and any of the other characters do not belong to me, sadly enough, but they do belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. The places mentioned (the common room, the Great Hall, Hogwarts, etc.) also do not belong to me. They are the creations of J.K Rowling's mind, and always will be. So, don't sue me for using them, and BE NICE. (Oh, look, I actually own a character: LACEY ROSE is miiine!)  
  
Things you need to know: Harry, Ron, and Hermione are in their fifth year. Harry is captain of the Quidditch team for Gryffindor, and Ron is the Keeper. Draco Malfoy is the captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team. At the beginning, the three are already a month into the school year. Ginny is still in love with Harry, but is trying to act like she doesn't like him anymore. I guess that's it...  
  
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Chapter One:  
  
Mixed Feelings  
  
  
  
  
Fifteen-year-old Hermione Granger sat in a huge chair, a big book in her lap. She was sitting alone in the Gryffindor common room, waiting for Harry to come down from his dorm so that they could begin working on their Great People of the Past project for Hogwarts History 101. Harry was already twenty minutes late, and Hermione was beginning to get impatient. She sighed heavily and brushed some pieces of her long brown hair out of her face.  
  
Meanwhile, Harry Potter was upstairs in the fifth year dorm room he shared with Ron, Dean, and Seamus. He was sitting on his bed while Ron was saying, "Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out."  
  
"I know how to breathe, Ron!" Harry snapped. "Oh, bloody hell. I'm too nervous. I can't go down there."  
  
"You have to!" Ron exclaimed. "You can't leave poor Hermione down there waiting for you like an old maid. If you don't think you can handle yourself alone with her, just go down and tell her you don't feel well and you don't think you are able to work on the project tonight. Then suggest that you two work on it tomorrow, that way everyone else will be in the common room with you guys, and you won't have to worry about making a move on her."  
  
Harry glared at one of his two best friends. "Don't say it like that!" he screeched. "By saying 'you won't have to worry about making a move on her' it sounds like you're suggesting I'm some kind of hormonal teenager that can't control himself around Hermione Granger!"  
  
"You are some hormonal teenager that can't control himself around Hermione Granger! Half the guys in Hogwarts are hormonal teenagers that can't control themselves around Hermione Granger! Including Draco Malfoy!"  
  
Harry sighed. He knew Ron was right. For some reason, when Harry saw Hermione at the beginning of the school year, he felt something different for her than he had last year. She had changed so much, not just in looks but in personality. Her looks had changed, sure; Hermione's hair was no longer frizzy: instead it hung straight down to her waist. She had sprouted up another two inches, making her five foot six. Her baby fat from the previous years had thinned out all over her body. Something Harry couldn't help but notice was that her breasts had grown larger over the summer, because last year her robes barely rose from her chest, but this year her breasts strained against the fabric. Aside from looks, Hermione's personality had changed as well. She was no longer a perfectionist bookworm. True, she still cared about her grades, but you could no longer find her engrossed in a thick hardback book on the fluffy couch in the common room. Hermione's bossiness that she had had the first four years of attending Hogwarts seemed to have vanished. Harry really liked the change, but it just made him like Hermione as more than a friend. He longed to be her boyfriend. He knew he could never have her when seventh years and fifth year Slytherins like Draco Malfoy, who hated Gryffindors, were even competing for her!  
  
Back down in the common room, Hermione checked her watch. Feeling an enormous hurt take over her body, she sighed and stood up from the chair. *Great, Herm,* she told herself. *You can't even get Harry Potter to come down for a study date!* Aloud, she voiced, "Well, I'm not taking all responsibility for this project! If he wants it finished, he'll have to help!" She sat the book down on the chair and slipped her shoes on her feet.  
  
With another sigh Hermione began to climb the stairs to the fifth year girls' dorm room that she shared with Lavender Brown, Lacey Rose, and Parvati Patil. She began to make up reasons for Harry in her head: he was busy with a game of wizard's chess that he absolutely could not quit; he was busy writing a letter to the Dursleys; he had too much homework. None of the reasons seemed to suffice, though.  
  
Hermione opened the door and walked over to her bed. She collapsed into the velvetty red sheets and comforter of her comfortable twin-size bed. Hoping that nobody else was in the dorm, she began to cry quietly. But she quickly brushed away her tears. She refused to be another starstruck Harry Potter fan club member! She refused to cry over him for standing her up on their study date! She wasn't an immature fourth year any longer. *Get over it, Herm. He stood you up. There's better things to cry over than Harry Potter,* a voice in her head told her. Another voice said, *Cry all you want to, Hermione Lynn Granger. Harry Potter doesn't deserve you anyhow.*  
  
She listened to the second voice and continued to sob into her pillow.  
  
In the boys' dorm, Harry was still glued to his bed. "Maybe I'll just get in bed early and tell her I fell asleep and slept through our study date," Harry told Ron.   
  
"You're hopeless."  
  
"Yes, I am," Harry agreed. "I would go down, but I honestly don't trust myself around her. She's so beautiful...and I like her so much. But...I don't want to hurt her like that idiot Viktor Krum did earlier this year!"  
  
"Hermi's a strong girl, Harry," Ron said after a long silence. "She'll stop you if you try something that she doesn't want you doing."  
  
"I know that she most likely would stop me," Harry said. "But what would it do to our friendship if I tried something and she didn't stop me? Or if I tried something and she told me to stop, but I wouldn't? Or got caught trying something with her, by somebody like Lavender or Lacey? We're fifteen, and I just don't wanna risk the chance that I would try something with her that could—could—you know, get her into trouble."  
  
"You're a strange guy, Harry," Ron said. "A really strange guy." He laughed and went over to his bed. He turned back and looked at Harry. "You really think about getting Hermione into 'trouble'?"  
  
Harry's eyes widened. "Did I say that?" he asked quickly. "Of course not! I don't think about things like that! Not yet! I'm only fifteen!" When Ron laughed, Harry threw a hard pillow at him and then laid face down on his bed.  
  
Harry tried to make the voices spinning around in his head stop. But they wouldn't. *You don't want to hurt Hermione, so go down to the common room. She'll stop you if you do something that she doesn't like,* said one. Another said, *Stay right where you are, Harry. Don't take the chance.*  
  
Like Hermione, Harry listened to the second voice and stayed put. He soon dozed off into a restless and guilty sleep.  
  
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Well, that's the first chapter! Hoped you guys liked it! I'll put up the second chapter when I get...two reviews! 


	2. Confusion

Disclaimer: This is a Harry Potter fanfic. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, and any of the other characters do not belong to me, sadly enough, but they do belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. The places mentioned (the common room, the Great Hall, Hogwarts, etc.) also do not belong to me. They are the creations of J.K Rowling's mind, and always will be. So, don't sue me for using them, and BE NICE.  
  
I got a lot more than two reviews, thanks you guys! I'm continuing the story with a second chapter...So here it is!  
  
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Chapter Two:  
  
Confusion  
  
  
  
  
The next morning Hermione awoke with a splitting headache from crying herself to sleep. *Why was I crying?* she wondered. Suddenly, memories of the night before popped into her head and made her headache worsen.  
  
Hermione lifted a hand to her unruly and tangled mass of brown hair. She groaned and swung her legs over the side of her bed to walk over to her full-length mirror.  
  
With shock she realized she looked like the walking dead. Her hair looked like it was back to its frizzy state from the years before. Her normally alive cinnamon brown eyes looked glassy, tired, and...sad. She had dark circles under her eyes, and streaks down her face from crying. Looking like that, Harry would run away from her screaming.  
  
But who cared what Harry thought? "Not me!" Hermione declared loudly, causing Lacey Rose to stir and mumble something that sounded like, "Five more minutes, Mom."  
  
With a tired sigh, Hermione realized it was Saturday. She couldn't get back to sleep, so she brushed her hair quickly and tied it up in a bun. She then put on her bathrobe and went to the common room to think. She sat on a fluffy couch and stared off into space trying to think about her schoolwork, classes, friends, and Hogwarts in general. However, her mind wandered to none other than Harry Potter. Why had he stood her up for a study date? Was she that repulsive to him, or did he have a good reason?  
  
"I don't care about that jerk!" Hermione called out, as if to convince herself. But no matter what she tried to think about, she found herself back to Harry. She'd think about school, then she'd think about her friends, then about Ron being the new Keeper, then to Quidditch, and that would bring her to Harry.  
  
Hermione groaned. "Hermione Lynn Granger, are you really this pathetic?" she asked herself.  
  
Suddenly, a voice asked, "I don't know, are you?"  
  
Hermione's head snapped toward the source of the voice. Harry stood at the foot of the stairs that led up to the boys' dormitories.  
  
"Well, are you really this pathetic?" he asked with a grin.  
  
"Harry, I don't have anything to say to you," Hermione said coldly.  
  
"I'm sorry about last night, Herm," Harry apologized.  
  
Hermione shot him a disgusted look. "Sorry isn't gonna help this time, Harry," she answered.  
  
"That's all I can tell you," Harry said.  
  
"Maybe you could offer an explanation to why you didn't come down here last night to help me on that project."  
  
"Herm...—"  
  
Hermione cut him off by standing up. "Don't 'Herm' me, Harry Potter! I am used to taking the backseat to you and Ron, because you're the 'Boy Who Lived', and Ron's your best friend, but I realized last night that you take that for granted! I'm just good ol' Hermi. I don't have feelings according to you and Ron. Well, guess what, Harry? I DO!"  
  
Tears were stinging Hermione's eyes. *Don't cry in front of Harry, Herm. Wait until you get upstairs.*  
  
"I—I don't take you for granted," Harry stammered.  
  
"Yes you do!" Hermione screamed. All of a sudden, she didn't care if Harry saw her cry. She burst into tears.  
  
Harry just stood there. *I am such a jerk. I made Hermi cry...* he thought. *Maybe I should do something.*  
  
Slowly, he put an arm around Hermione. He waited for her to slap him away, but she didn't. Instead she turned and wrapped her arms around him and cried into his shoulder.  
  
*Why am I so pathetic? Why am I crying? Stop it, Hermione! Don't hug Harry! Don't! Don't let him use his wonderful charm and sexiness and caring to drag you into this. He was a jerk...be a bitch right back...* Hermione told herself. But she didn't let go. She found herself hugging Harry even tighter.  
  
When Hermione finally stopped crying, Harry's shoulder was covered with her tears. "S—Sorry," she said, sniffling.   
  
Harry smiled at her. "It's okay, Hermione. You needed a good cry. I know now that Ron and I do take you for granted. We've always thought, 'Well, ol' Hermi will always be there to comfort us when we need her. She'll always be there if we need homework help. She'll always be there!' I know that you'll probably never always be here for us when we need you. Ron and I need to be weaned from you!"  
  
Hermione laughed through another sniff. She looked up into Harry's amazing emerald green eyes, and his brilliant 100-watt smile. In turn, Harry looked down into Hermione's cinnamon brown eyes. He wanted to comfort her again. He wanted to hug her and never let go. He wanted to kiss her senseless.  
  
Harry was thinking about whether or not to kiss Hermione. Just as he decided, ditzy Lacey Rose came stumbling down the stairs into the common room. Her long blonde hair hung down into her bright blue eyes. She stumbled on the last step, and Harry rushed over to catch her before she fell flat on her face.  
  
Hermione watched, jealous, as Harry listened to Lacey giggle flirtily. He laughed, and didn't pay Hermione any more attention. Hermione wrinkled her nose and walked past them and up to the dorm. Harry didn't even seem to notice she was gone.  
  
"UUUUUGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!"  
  
"Gosh, Hermione," Lavender said. "I'm up, and so is Parvati. You don't have to come up here to give us our wake-up call."  
  
Hermione turned around and looked at a fully dressed Lavender sitting on her already-made bed. Lavender wrinkled her nose.  
  
"I'd suggest getting dressed, Hermione," Parvati said. "Breakfast in in about twenty minutes."  
  
Hermione sighed. She was so confused about Harry. It almost seemed as if they were going to kiss. But when Lacey came down, all flirty and barely dressed, Harry scampered right over to her. She took Parvati's advice and dressed herself. Since it was Saturday, and the students of Hogwarts could wear whatever they wanted, Hermione in a pair of dark blue hip-hugger flares and a short-sleeved blue shirt. She brushed and straightened her hair, happy that it curled the way she wanted it to. Then she applied some foundation, powder, light blue eyeshadow, eyeliner, a littly bit of blush to make her cheeks rosy, and a rosy tinted lip gloss. To finish off her look, Hermione slipped her light brown slip-on shoes onto her feet. She looked into the mirror. Satisfied, she headed back down to the common room, where Harry and Lacey were still talking. Sighing, she walked right on past them and out the portrait hole, and down the corridor to the Great Hall.  
  
*Don't be jealous of Lacey,* Hermione told herself. *You don't need Harry.* She tried to convince herself of this on her way down the hall. But she was extremely confused. She sighed, and entered the Great Hall, took her place at the Gryffindor table, and hoped that no one would notice that she was sad.  
  
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There's the second chapter! Hope you liked it! Don't forget to review! I will put the next chapter up when I get 17 reviews. 


	3. That Hermione!

Disclaimer: This is a Harry Potter fanfic. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, and any of the other characters do not belong to me, sadly enough, but they do belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. The places mentioned (the common room, the Great Hall, Hogwarts, etc.) also do not belong to me. They are the creations of J.K Rowling's mind, and always will be. So, don't sue me for using them, and BE NICE.  
  
Again, I got more reviews than I asked for! Thanks EVERYONE and I'm glad you all like my story! So, on with the third chapter!  
  
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Chapter Three:  
  
That Hermione!  
  
  
  
  
"Miss Granger. If I have to wake you up again, I will be forced to take points from Gryffindor!" a very angry Professor McGonagall said before continuing with her lesson.  
  
Hermione sighed and sat up, trying to pay attention to Professor McGonagall. The past week Hermione had barely been able to pay attention in any of her classes. Either she was too tired from staying up and worrying about Harry the night before, or she was daydreaming about being with Harry. *Hermione, you are better than this. Do not be another star-struck Harry Potter fan club member!* she told herself angrily, pushing some loose strands of curly brown hair from her face.  
  
Harry was snapped back into attention when McGonagall yelled at Hermione. He had been daydreaming about...stuff. He sighed as he watched Hermione's every move. He watched her move her hand to her hair and brush some of the beatiful silky pieces falling out of her clip away from her eyes. He watched her bend over to get her notebook, a Muggle object, out from under her desk. He watched her jot something down quickly, just imagining how her handwriting looked.  
  
"Potter! What are you staring at?" McGonagall asked, looking at the teen that looked like he had just seen a famous Muggle movie star.  
  
Harry looked up at McGonagall, who was wearing an exasperated look on her tired face. "S—Sorry," Harry muttered. His face turned a light shade of crimson when Draco Malfoy looked over at him and snickered. Harry turned an even deeper shade of red when Hermione turned and looked at him.  
  
"She's so beautiful," he whispered.  
  
"Who is?" Ron asked, looking over at Harry.  
  
Harry's eyes got big. He hadn't realized he had said that aloud. "Nobody!" he answered quickly.  
  
Ron smirked. "Yeah, sure." He continued to listen to McGonagall's lecture. Soon, though, he found himself thinking about Hermione again. He only realized he wasn't listening to McGonagall when she said, "Okay, since everyone in here seems to be so tired that they can't pay attention to this lecture, class is dismissed. Have a nice day."  
  
Everyone stood up from their tables. As Hermione was about to walk out the door, Harry grabbed her arm. "Herm, I think we need to talk."  
  
She stared up at him. "The last time you said that you ended up all over Lacey Rose. I have better things to do, Harry." She pulled away from his grasp and continued down the hallway. Deep inside her head, she hoped that Harry would follow her. When she felt a hand on her shoulder, she immediately said, "GO AWAY, HARRY."  
  
"It's not Harry," a voice said.  
  
Hermione twirled around and found herself staring into Draco Malfoy's ice blue eyes. "What do you want?" she snarled.  
  
"This." Draco pulled Hermione up close to him and placed his mouth on hers. His hand wandered down toward her hips, then lower and lower. Hermione felt his tongue creeping through her lips into her mouth, and she yanked herself away from him.  
  
"BLOODY HELL, MALFOY!" Hermione screamed. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" She gave him a disgusted look and turned to leave.  
  
Draco grabbed her arm again. "Nobody walks away from me, Granger." He backed her up against a wall and began kissing her again.  
  
Hermione pushed him away again. "Them I'm obviously nobody, because I'm walking away from you!" she screamed.  
  
Suddenly, as if he had been watching Draco Malfoy doing that to Hermione, Harry turned the corner with a mad look on his face. "Get the hell away from her, Malfoy."  
  
Draco smirked. "What are you gonna do if I don't, Potter?" he questioned, an amused look on his face.  
  
Harry advanced. "Leave Hermione alone."  
  
Draco grabbed Hermione around the waist and began kissing her neck. Harry dragged him away, and punched him. Harry looked down at Draco, who was sprawled out on the ground, blood dripping from his nose. He then turned to Hermione. "Come on, Herm, let's get away from this jerk."  
  
Hermione felt safe and protected now that Harry was there. She nodded and walked down the hall with Harry. She felt warm and cozy when Harry slipped an arm around her waist and led her to the portrait of the Fat Lady.  
  
"Thanks, Harry," Hermione said once they were in the common room. She gagged. "Yuck...Draco Malfoy's slimy tongue was in my mouth." She shuddered. "I have to go disinfect it now."  
  
"I'm sorry I didn't get there sooner...I was talking to Lacey Rose."  
  
Hermione looked down. "Oh...well, I guess you should go find her," Hermione said, her voice sad and tearful. "I'm gonna go up to the dorm and catch up on my sleep." She turned to go, but felt Harry's strong hands attach at her waist and pull her back to him. He turned her around.  
  
"Hermione. I have been talking to Lacey Rose about you," Harry began. When Hermione began to talk, he put a finger to her lips to silence her. "I was asking her how I could manage to get such a beautiful girl like you to be my girlfriend, and she said to just be myself. And you know what else she told me?" When Hermione shook her head no, Harry said, "She told me that she's been waiting to trap us together, and she felt like such an idiot when she came down the stairs that morning, interrupting us."  
  
Hermione was too shocked to say anything. She looked up into Harry's beautiful emerald green eyes and was transfixed. She felt Harry's hand on her cheekbone. Slowly but surely, his hand traced the outline of her jaw. He let his hand drop down her neck, over her arm, and it finally landed with the other on her hips. Breathing heavily, trying to muster up enough courage to be able to do what she wanted to do since the first day of school, she brought her hands up to Harry's head and pulled him into a deep kiss, her fingers twirling his messy black hair. She felt him moving his hands up to her back, moving them up and down, and then move back down to her hips, only a little lower. They stood there for a long time, engrossed in their deep kiss, until Ron walked into the common room from the portrait hole.  
  
When Ron saw Hermione and Harry, he did a double take. Seeing Ron out of the corner of his eye, Harry pulled away from Hermione.   
  
"Am I interrupting something?" Ron asked, trying to look innocent.  
  
"Oh, no," Hermione said sourly. "You can watch Harry and me kiss, if you really want to. Maybe you'll end up seeing more than you bargained for."  
  
Harry laughed, but Ron began backing back out the portrait hole. "Erm...um...that's okay...I'll be going...to the erm...library. Bye!"  
  
Hermione giggled. She looked up at Harry and asked, "Now, where were we?"  
  
"Here, I think," Harry said, pulling Hermione into another kiss. A second later, he pulled back away. "Were you really serious when you told Ron that if he stuck around, he might end up seeing more than he bargained for?" he questioned, a mishevious look on his handsome face.  
  
Hermione raised her eyebrows. She giggled, and turned to run up the stairs to the girls' dorms. She stopped, though, and turned to look back at a shocked and startled Harry. "Not tonight, Harry. Sorry to disapoint you." Hermione giggled and continued running up the stairs.  
  
Watching her, Harry smiled lightly. "That Hermione!" he said to no one. "She's great."  
  
With a heavy and contented sigh, a satisfied heart, and a longing for Hermione, Harry too headed up the stairs to his dorm, hardly being able to wait for the chance to meet Hermione alone again.  
  
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That's the end of chapter three. Hoped you guys liked it. I'm hoping for 25 reviews before I post the next chapter! 


	4. Closet Space

Disclaimer: This is a Harry Potter fanfic. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, and any of the other characters do not belong to me, sadly enough, but they do belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. The places mentioned (the common room, the Great Hall, Hogwarts, etc.) also do not belong to me. They are the creations of J.K Rowling's mind, and always will be. So, don't sue me for using them, and BE NICE.  
  
Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, everyone! Now I can't wait to continue my story, because I have some new story ideas and love tangles and such...so keep coming back and reading! Also, when I ask for reviews, if I say 25, I don't mean 25 more. On the last chapter, I had 22 reviews, so I asked for 25. I think that was a little bit of a misunderstanding.  
  
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Chapter Four:  
  
Closet Space  
  
  
  
  
Hermione giggled as Harry kissed her neck. She was playing with his black hair, messy as usual, as he moved his hands up and down her back, drawing small circles with his fingers.  
  
It was another class-free Saturday. Most of the school was at Hogsmeade, but Harry, Hermione, and a few other Gryffindors had decided to stay back. The other students stayed back so they could enjoy the beautiful weather outside on the grounds, and some just didn't feel like going. Harry and Hermione, however, stayed back for some alone time, since they rarely got any time to themselves during the school week.  
  
"There's a Halloween dance coming up soon, you know that, right?" Harry asked Hermione, who was perched carefully on his lap.  
  
Hermione nodded empathetically. "I can hardly wait!" she exclaimed. "Hogwarts dances are always a lot of fun. But the dance committee still has a lot of planning to do, or so says Lacey, Lavender, and Parvati."  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
They sat in a long silence. Finally, Hermione jumped up from Harry's lap, startling him. "Let's go exploring, Harry, like we used to do when we were younger! Remember how Ron, you, and I found Fluffy our first year? Let's explore!" she said.  
  
Harry smiled up at her. It wasn't like Hermione to want to break the rules, but if she wanted to..."Okay!" Harry agreed quickly. He grabbed her hand and together they walked out the portrait hole.  
  
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"I haven't seen this part of the castle before."  
  
Harry put a comforting arm around his girlfriend. "It's okay, Herm. It's not like we're lost." He was still trying to convince himself of that, though. Hogwarts was a very big, very mysterious castle. The stairways changed, the pictures talked, and sometimes it almost seemed as if the halls themselves changed. But Harry was almost confident that they would find the portrait of the Fat Lady, to be able to get back to their common room. And they had a while to look, too, Harry noted, looking at his watch and seeing it was only 12:00.  
  
They continued walking until they came upon a door. It was a regular old Muggle door that seemed to have no enchantment on it, no lock, or anything. Hermione cautiously opened it, waiting for a monster like Fluffy to pop out and maim her. But that didn't happen; Hermione reached in to find a light switch, and the two realized that it was only a closet filled with old brooms and mops and cleaners.  
  
Harry laughed, and stepped in. Hermione followed, and they looked at all the bottles. "Yummy Yummy Floor Cleaner for Schools," Hermione said, reading a bottle. "Verry Berry Cleaner."  
  
Harry and Hermione had a fun time just looking at the names of the old cleaners. When they were ready to leave, they turned, and saw that the door was shut. Hermione looked up at Harry, puzzled. "Did you shut the door?"  
  
He shook his head. "Did you?"  
  
"No."  
  
Hermione reached out to open the door, but no matter how hard she turned the handle, the door would not budge. After a while of banging and beating on the door, Hermione sat down on an old milk crate and sulked. "Damn," she muttered. She looked up at Harry, who was grinning. "What are you smiling about, Harry? We're locked in a stupid closet, and the rest of the student body will be back for dinner in a couple of hours. They won't even notice we're gone, since we haven't been with them all day. Who knows how long it will take them to find us in this abandoned part of the school, anyway?"  
  
Harry started laughing and pulled a milk crate up beside of Hermione. "We could gripe and complain about this," Harry said, "or we could make the best of it. We've been complaining that we never get any alone time, and here we finally are, locked in a small closet in a part of Hogwarts nobody ever comes to. That's just luck, Herm."  
  
Hermione began to smile. "I think you're right, Harry," she said. "Let's make the best of this." She stood up and kicked the milk crate she was sitting on away. "The floor space in here is quite big..."  
  
Harry looked at her and gaped. "Herm, are you suggesting..."  
  
"You know very well what I'm suggesting Harry Potter."  
  
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Harry smiled down at Hermione lovingly. She stared into her cinnamon brown eyes intently. "That was—the best thing I have ever experienced in my entire life!" The couple was sitting up against a wall, exhausted from the first lovemaking of their lives.  
  
Hermione smiled at Harry. She looked his now fully-clothed body up and down, and stopped at his scar. She brought a hand up and touched it gently. "Me too, Harry," she said wistfully, sighing contentedly.  
  
"I didn't mean to hurt you, Hermi. I would never hurt you intentionally," Harry told her.  
  
"It's okay, Harry. It was supposed to hurt some. And the only reason it hurt is because you are too big," Hermione replied, vaguely remembering how she had cried out in pain when he had entered her. It hurt so bad that she had almost begged him to stop, although she didn't in the end.  
  
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Big? I thought I was normal," he said with a laugh.  
  
Hermione giggled. "I have a brother and a dad, and I've caught a few glimpses," she said.  
  
"Well...I thought your mother would be a little more careful to keep you from getting glimpses."  
  
Suddenly, Harry's face turned as white as a ghost. "Hermione...we weren't careful. We didn't use protection!"  
  
Hermione gasped. Her mouth fell open. Suddenly, she began to cry. "Oh no. W—what if I g—get p—pregnant?" she asked through sobs. She clutched Harry's arm tightly.  
  
Harry stood up and pulled Hermione up with him. "I did something stupid. It's my fault. I should have stopped myself!"  
  
"It's too late to think about that now!"  
  
"Well, there's probably some way to stop you from getting pregnant, Herm...Some kind of charm or something that prevents conception even after it happened. Which isn't for sure."  
  
Hermione continued crying as she said, "Yeah...maybe..."  
  
"Don't cry, Herm. We need to get out of this closet. Before...anything else happens."  
  
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"Where have you guys been?" Ron asked from a chair in the common room, which was now buzzing with activity.  
  
Hermione looked at Harry guiltily and then looked at Ron. "The library," she answered, trying to sound convincable.  
  
Ron laughed. "Figures. You could go out to Hogsmeade, but you two stay here to go to the library?" he asked. "Were you working on the Great People of the Past project or whatever it was?"  
  
Hermione gasped. She suddenly remembered the night she had waited for Harry so they could work on their project. "Actually—"  
  
"Yeah, we were," Harry said quickly, cutting Hermione off. He grabbed her arm and pulled her back outside the portrait hole, saying bye to Ron over his shoulder.  
  
"Why did you do that?"  
  
"Do you really want Ron asking questions, Hermione?" When she shook her head no, Harry said, "That's what I thought. When Ron gets to ask questions, he usually figures it out. So, if anyone asks where we were, we were working on our project, not letting our hormones take us over and having sex in a closet. Speaking of the project, I believe we need to go work on it. And find a certain charm." Harry grabbed her hand and pulled her to the library.  
  
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Well, that's it. I didn't really like this chapter much...I dunno what happened really. I guess I kinda got lazy. I don't know. Anyway, I'm gonna make up for it by giving an extra good chapter five. 


	5. Questions

Disclaimer: This is a Harry Potter fanfic. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, and any of the other characters do not belong to me, sadly enough, but they do belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. The places mentioned (the common room, the Great Hall, Hogwarts, etc.) also do not belong to me. They are the creations of J.K Rowling's mind, and always will be. So, don't sue me for using them, and BE NICE.  
  
Shew...the last chapter was not really as good as I would have hoped. I hope this chapter is better. Thanks to all who reviewed, I think this might be my last chapter. I'm not sure yet. I'm sorry if you didn't like Hermione, but that's just how I did the story. I'm glad you liked the last chapter, and here's chapter five.  
  
And I was thinking about bumping the rating to PG13...In fact, I did.  
  
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Chapter Five:  
  
Questions  
  
  
  
  
The weeks quickly passed. The Halloween dance was cancelled because of "innapropriate actions" students were doing in Hogwarts. Hermione had implented some kind of birth control charm the day after the night Harry and she had let their hormones take over. So she was happy and completely carefree, until...  
  
One morning, about six weeks after it happened, Hermione woke up early and felt a wave of sickness sweep over her. She ran into the bathroom, got on her knees, and retched in the toilet bowl. When she stood up and walked back to her bed, Lacey Rose was sitting there, waiting for her.  
  
"Did you just get sick?" Lacey asked.  
  
Hermione nodded miserably as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "I think I'm getting the flu, or a stomach bug." She sat down in a chair.  
  
Lacey studied Hermione. "Have you missed any periods or anything?"  
  
"Actually, I missed last month's." Hermione sat down. "I think it's stress, though."  
  
"I've noticed you haven't ate anything much at meals for a while..."  
  
Hermione nodded. "I haven't really had much of an appetite lately," she replied. "Gosh, Lacey, what's with the third degree? You've never asked me this many questions before!" Hermione laughed.  
  
"No reason," Lacey said. "So...have you thrown up any other times, in the morning?"  
  
"LACEY!" Hermione said, laughing. "Gosh, with all these questions, someone's gonna think I'm preg—" Hermione stopped. Her face crumbled as she remembered that day she was alone with Harry in a closet... "Oh no." She began to panic.  
  
"Hermione...?"  
  
Hermione looked at Lacey and began to cry. Lacey hugged her. "Stop crying, Herm. It's okay. Do you wanna tell Aunty Lacey everything?"  
  
Hermione spilled everything. "Lacey, what am I going to do?"  
  
"Well, I would suggest taking a pregnancy test to be sure, and then tell Harry. What to do with the baby if you are pregnant is up to you and Harry, Herm," Lacey said. "But think about it, because you two are only fifteen. Do you think you could handle a baby running around, and go to classes and such?"  
  
Hermione took a deep breath. "I don't know, Lacey. I'm so confused. And where am I supposed to get a pregnancy test?"  
  
Lacey smiled. "Go to Madame Pomfrey. She has everything, and she has to keep anything a student tells her confidential."  
  
Hermione nodded. She felt miserable. For just one stupid and wild thing she had done out of impulse, Hermione was going to suffer major consequences.  
  
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At breakfast, Hermione didn't eat. She sat there sipping her pumpkin juice, extremely nervous. She hoped Harry or Ron wouldn't notice her strange behavior.  
  
But of course Harry did. "What's wrong, Hermione?" he asked, his young face full of concern for his lover.  
  
"Harry..." Hermione almost cried. "I need to talk to you later. About closets."  
  
Harry's eyes widened. "No, Herm!" He took her hand and led her away from the Gryffindor table. "You're not pregnant, are you?"  
  
"I think so! I've been having morning sickness, I missed my last period, and I have no appetite. Lacey thinks I'm pregnant, at least."  
  
"Oh, Herm..." Harry's voice trailed off. "It's my fault. I should have thought...I could have said no. I shouldn't have finished inside of you. When it hurt you, I should've pulled out. I should have thought...if only I had my mind in the damn gutter like Ron and Dean do. Then I could've gotten a condom from them or something." He stopped, realizing he had said too much. Before Hermione could say anything, though, he pulled her into a tight embrace. He leaned down and whispered, loudly, into her ear, "It'll be okay, Herm. Find out if you're pregnant, and then we'll take it from there..."  
  
"So your little Mudblood whore might be pregnant, huh, Potter?"  
  
Hermione whirled around and found herself facing Draco Malfoy. "Malfoy...please don't say anything to anybody," she begged.  
  
Malfoy smirked. "What would make you think I'd tell anyone your little secret, Granger?" He turned away and faced Harry. "I didn't know you had it in you, Potter. Screwing a chick in a closet. Of all places. And the Mudblood whore of all people."  
  
Harry growled deep in his throat. "How did you know that?"  
  
Malfoy laughed. "You thought the door closed by itself? I was hoping that you'd be locked there and wouldn't be able to get out. I followed you guys, and heard everything going on in there. So I unlocked the door, and then left. I guess Granger's pretty good in bed...or should I say in the closet?"  
  
Hermione narrowed her eyes at Draco. "You're a prick, Malfoy. Get the hell away from me, and if you come within ten feet of me, I'll tell everybody about your little affair with Lavender Brown."  
  
Malfoy backed away. "How do you know about that, bitch?" he demanded.  
  
"Girls talk, Malfoy. You can't tell me you didn't go off and tell your goons that you slept with Lavender. A Gryffindor of all people."  
  
"Don't you dare tell anyone about that, Granger."  
  
"I won't. If you don't mention me to anyone at all. Don't forget, I could also tell McGonagall and Dumbledore that you sexually harrassed me."  
  
When Malfoy walked away, Harry laughed and hugged Hermione. "You're strong girl, Herm. And I'm glad that you can take care of yourself. Now, about that possible baby..." He touched her stomach.  
  
Hermione smiled and punched him lightly on the arm. "I know I am, Potter!" She hugged him tightly, as if she could never let go. Inside, she was so scared. She was only fifteen. She couldn't be pregnant. No way. Her parents would kill her, and her credibility would be lost. Not to mention the respect that people had for her. A baby would ruin her entire life.  
  
*I guess I should have thought about that before I had sex with Harry,* Hermione thought, still clinging to Harry. *What's done is done, and I can't change that.*  
  
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The next morning, Hermione wanted to jump for joy. She had done like Lacey suggested, and had told Madame Pomfrey all about her little ordeal. Madame Pomfrey happily gave her a home pregnancy test, and wished her good luck. Hermione had taken it, and she was more than overjoyed with the results.   
  
She ran down the stairs to the common room. She spotted Lacey talking to Lavender and Harry by the fireplace. Hermione grinned. "I'm not! I'm not! It's negative!" she screamed.  
  
The common room got quiet. Hermione looked around. "Take a picture, it'll last longer," she said. She continued running over to Harry, who wore a delighted look on his face. "I'm not pregnant Harry!"  
  
"That's good news!" Harry replied ecstatically. He picked Hermione up and spun her around. "I love you so much, Herm."  
  
Lavender looked at Hermione, and then to Harry, and then back at Hermione. She wore a confused look. "You...had sex with Harry, Herm?" she asked, unbelieving.  
  
Hermione sighed. Most of the common room was staring at her in awe. "Here we go," she muttered, climbing up on a chair in the middle of the common room, getting everybody's attention. "As you all probably know by now, I had a major pregnancy scare. Yes, I had sex with Harry Potter. Now leave me alone."  
  
The people in the room gaped at her. Then they all broke into applause. "The only two Gryffindors to have sex are the two best students!" a seventh year said. "Go you two!"  
  
Lavender was uncomfortable. Hermione walked over to her. "I know about you and Draco, Lav. But I'm not going to tell anyone."  
  
Lavender smiled at her thankfully.   
  
The people in the common room continued asking questions. Hermione screamed, but no one heard her. She grabbed Harry's hand, dragged him up to her dorm, and locked the door.  
  
"Alone again." 


End file.
